Protein guides cytoneme 'highway' formation to support developmental signaling
Cytonemes are tendril-like appendages that developing cells use to communicate across large distances. Their cargo—including the key signaling protein Sonic Hedgehog (SHH)—is highly specific, but the mechanisms underlying this specificity were unclear.
Developing cells communicate across large distances using cytonemes, tendril-like appendages that carry key signaling proteins like Sonic Hedgehog (SHH). Scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have discovered how SHH activates a receptor protein cascade to create a customized highway for the protein during embryonic development.
SHH recruits two cytoneme project managers, BOC and CDON, which bring in additional proteins such as FARP1 and Cdc42 to promote actin-based cytoneme growth. When BOC and CDON are removed from SHH-producing cells, cytoneme numbers decrease, affecting the proper formation of neural cells and their differentiation. This new understanding of SHH signaling's long-distance transport could provide insights into developmental disorders and cancer.
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